Qualcomm is spitting out XR2 chips sooner than VR headsets can use them

What you’ll want to know

• Qualcomm is allegedly sending new XR2 and XR2+ Gen 3 chips out to VR HMDs.
• These “Venture Matrix” chips supposedly assist 16GB of RAM, UFS 4.0 storage, and 4K screens and should use Oryon CPUs.
• The Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 was introduced in early January and has but to be featured in shopper merchandise.

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Qualcomm reportedly has begun testing and lending out its Snapdragon XR2 Gen 3 and XR2+ Gen 3 chips, designed for the following technology of VR headsets. This leaked information stunned us, provided that one Gen 2 chip hasn’t entered customers’ fingers but.

WinFuture’s Roland Quandt first posted on X about “Venture Matrix,” the corporate’s “next-gen AR/VR chips,” on Might 17. Particularly, he defined how the higher-end SXR2350 will assist 16GB of RAM, UFS 4.0 storage, and 4K screens. 

Extra not too long ago, VR analyst Brad Lynch shared a leaked cargo manifest displaying that Qualcomm is delivery out the SXR2350 chip — probably referred to as the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 3 — for “testing and integration in future HMDs.”

Lynch speculates that it will be “practically similar” to the XR2+ Gen 2 in options and bandwidth, however use the Oryon CPU discovered within the Snapdragon X Elite as an alternative of Arm Cortex cores, plus a extra energy-efficient GPU. 

Qualcomm is “delivery these a lot sooner than the hole between Gen 1 and Gen 2,” Lynch factors out in the identical thread, arguing that “there should be (a) enormous demand for one thing higher” than the XR2+ Gen 2. 

The Meta Quest Professional used the XR2+ Gen 1, whereas the Meta Quest 3 makes use of the XR2 Gen 2, which supplies it robust gaming efficiency. The XR2 Gen 3 (no “+”) would theoretically goal the Quest 4, however that is not anticipated to reach for years.

Qualcomm solely introduced the upgraded Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 in January 2024, with Samsung, Sony, and HTC Vive committing to make use of this chip in future productiveness headsets that require extra energy. As of but, none of them have shipped. 

Qualcomm says the XR2+ Gen 2 can assist 4.3K per eye decision, 12 concurrent cameras, and 15% & 20% boosts to GPU and CPU frequency, respectively, over the XR2 Gen 2. It is actually an improve, however not a drastic shift in energy. The leaked XR2+ Gen 3 may change that. 

Early testing or a rapid-fire shift?

A number of leakers agree that the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 3 is coming. The query is, why so quickly after the XR2+ Gen 2 announcement?

This new chip’s energy makes it well-suited for productiveness headsets just like the Meta Quest Professional 2, with its rumored 3,840 x 3,840 decision — however LG has delayed it till 2027, reportedly. Different Meta Horizon OS headsets may use it, like Lenovo’s XR productiveness headset. However that may not arrive for a while, both. 

At current, units like Samsung’s 2024 XR headset and Sony’s spatial XR headset are slated to make use of the XR2+ Gen 2. So why ship the XR2+ Gen 3 out to HMDs in the event that they’re nonetheless finalizing their Gen 2 headsets? 

I can solely consider two prospects: (A) Samsung and Co. requested for a chip with extra energy and can skip the Gen 2 in any case, or (B) Qualcomm itself desires to influence these manufacturers to strive its newer, higher tech, now that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will use Oryon later this yr.

The Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional used an M2 chip present in MacBooks, making it tough for different productiveness headsets to compete. Charging a laptop-level value for productiveness headsets with Snapdragon XR2 chips — basically redesigned variations of cellular chips present in Android telephones — is a tall ask for customers.

If the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 3 has Snapdragon X Elite-quality efficiency with higher RAM, then perhaps Samsung would delay its headset into 2025 to see a better probability of success. We’ll have to attend and see whether or not the XR2+ Gen 2 truly sees the sunshine of day or not, if the Gen 3 has supplanted it.